


Comparison

by balancingdiet



Series: give time the power to heal you and i [4]
Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Gen, Part of Tabula Rasa in Kaito’s POV
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21915223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/balancingdiet/pseuds/balancingdiet
Summary: “So... is it safe for me to say I’m your best neighbour too?”
Relationships: Kudou Shinichi | Edogawa Conan/Kuroba Kaito | Kaitou Kid
Series: give time the power to heal you and i [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1577851
Comments: 2
Kudos: 200





	Comparison

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! Just a heads up, you will have to read and complete the main part of this series “Tabula Rasa” to understand this chapter. In addition, there will also be spoilers for that fic. If you’ve finished reading TR... then I hope you’ll enjoy this! (It had been fun writing this particular part hahah)

“Yes, I will. Okay— I promise I’m gonna do it now.” Kaito closed the kitchen tap and clamped his phone in between his cheek and shoulder before heaving the filled watering-can out of the basin.

 _“Thank you, Kaito-botchama,”_ Jii said on the other line, but Kaito recognised more exasperation than satisfaction in Jii’s tone.

“I’mma hang up now, see you later.”

Cancelling the call, Kaito carried the watering-can in one hand and stumbled out to his backyard, and with his other hand, he went to his clock app and set three alarms.

Well, Kaito really couldn’t blame Jii for his worries and reminders these days, especially after Kaito recently got so distracted with his own things and nearly missed the hour of his heist; and Jii was almost desperate enough to act as Kaitou Kid then.

And this didn’t just happen once, but twice.

Standing in his backyard, Kaito glanced over to Shinichi’s house.

There were _indeed_ loads of distractions lately.

Kaito ambled over his rose plantations and began watering them, as what he normally did.

“Wow, you have plants.”

Kaito blinked, glancing towards the fence that cut between his and Shinichi’s house.

Rather than the owner of the backyard, Kaito found the other dark-skinned detective — Hattori Heiji — the man that wasn’t easy to forget, given his reputation and _the_ incident that nearly scarred Kaito for life.

Hattori was looking around Shinichi’s backyard in amazement, as if it was the first time he’d ever seen a patch of grass with two pots of plants... Or maybe it was the first time he’d seen Shinichi’s backyard, and knowing that Shinichi was plant-stupid in many sense, the two potted plants must be as impressive as running a country.

And speaking of first time, this was also the first time Kaito saw Shinichi ever had any visitor, well, save for Mouri Ran, the only unexpected and uninvited one.

All of the sudden, Hattori turned, spotting Kaito from where he was.

“Eh, your neighbour’s there too.” Hattori gave a wave. “Hello!”

Right there and then, Shinichi stepped out of his backyard door, his face looking all frozen and awkward.

_This could be fun._

Kaito grinned and waved back; but of course this wouldn’t be enough to consider fun. Putting the watering-can down, he walked towards the fence, and with every step closer, Shinichi looked more and more disgruntled...

Eventually, Shinichi pinched the bridge of his nose, looking absolutely done with Kaito, or Hattori, or basically the entire situation.

“Nice to meet ya,” Hattori said as he put a hand over his chest. “I’m Kudo’s best friend and greatest rival.”

“And his name is also Hattori Heiji,” Shinichi mumbled before gesturing weakly over Kaito’s face. “And he’s my neighbour, Kuroba Kaito,” he said to Hattori.

 _Best friend and greatest rival..._ Kaito propped an arm over the fence. “Is it safe for me to say that I’m your best neighbour too?”

Shinichi couldn’t look any more resigned than this. He turned away, ignoring Kaito and attempted to tug Hattori out of his backyard. “Ok, anyway—”

“Wait a minute.” Hattori’s eyes narrowed at Kaito suspiciously, and Kaito felt a shiver ran down his spine. “Why does it look so familiar?” Hattori added.

Kaito blinked, barely holding back the urge to touch his face, and it took a much greater effort to stop himself from giving a nervous swallow too.

The fun sure lasted shorter than Kaito expected.

But it wasn't just Kaito that was stumped; Shinichi’s eyes looked like they were going to fall out any moment.

“What?” Shinichi spat.

Hattori scratched his chin, and he looked like a curious monkey when he did. “I’ve seen it before…”

Shinichi stepped a little closer to the fence, as if trying to block Hattori’s view of Kaito. “What are you talking about—”

“That shirt, ya.” Hattori pointed to Kaito’s chest. “I’ve seen you worn it before.”

Kaito looked down.

Crap. He certainly played himself this time; he hadn’t realized he was wearing Shinichi’s shirt today, the one Shinichi changed him out on the night he bled a mess out of his Kid’s clothes.

He nervously glanced up, coincidentally meeting Shinichi’s eyes before turning to Hattori, who still had the same squinty look on his face.

“Uh,” Shinichi began. “Yes, what a coincidence that my neighbour has the same shirt as me.”

This was the stupidest thing Kaito ever heard, but he doubt he could complain about the excuse when he didn’t have anything better to say. He tried to add a laugh, hoping it was enough to ease the situation.

But then again, Hattori wasn’t named the Detective of the West for nothing. “Right—”

“Anyway, there’s nothing in my backyard besides the two plants, so let’s head back in,” Shinichi said. Hattori was obviously not listening as he was still scrutinising Kaito and the shirt, but he didn’t have the opportunity to comment anything else as Shinichi successfully dragged him back into his house.

The backyard door closed.

A cooing sound made Kaito turned as he stared at his two doves—Touma and Curry—perched one the other end of the fence.

Kaito scorned. “You two... enjoying the show?”

Curry cooed.

Shaking his head, Kaito headed back to his watering-can.

* * *

After Kaito finished watering his plants, he walked out of his house, played with his own mailbox latch for a bit before heading to Shinichi’s one.

No bird poop stain.

No reason for Kaito to be here then.

But that wasn’t going to stop him from doing what he wanted. Kaito leaned against Shinichi’s mailbox, fingers drumming across the top. Shinichi’s car was still parked at the usual spot, but Kaito was sure he had heard Shinichi’s front door opened and closed beforehand. He stared down at the empty street, the only path Shinichi could take to go to the train station, or anywhere else; Kaito’s house was on the end of the block anyway—

And Kaito was right, as he spotted Shinichi’s returning with both of his hands tugged deep inside his pockets. Hattori was nowhere in sight.

Kaito placed his elbow on the mailbox and rested his chin against his palm. As Shinichi got much closer, and clearly already spotting him from the distance, Kaito spoke, “You haven’t answered my question.”

Shinichi looked confused, but he expressed that with a frown. “I don’t remember any question,” he replied, stopping his tracks before Kaito.

“So...” Kaito grinned. “Is it safe for me to say that I’m your best neighbour too?”

Shinichi rolled his eyes. “What do you think?”

“Yes?”

Kaito expected Shinichi to not reply, but he didn’t expect Shinichi to return to his house so soon when their conversation barely started. Kaito stared at Shinichi’s back and observed the slump on his shoulders, which Kaito didn’t notice earlier in the backyard when Shinichi was mostly tensed the entire time.

He wondered what Hattori was here for, and what they had talked about in the house. And if... it had anything to do with Mouri Ran.

Then, to Kaito’s surprise, Shinichi suddenly stopped and turned, looking at Kaito over his shoulder.

“What?” Shinichi muttered.

 _Does he have eyes on his back?_ “Nothing,” Kaito said.

Kaito knew what it was like to have his problems meddled with when he didn’t want it to be, and Kaito wasn’t going to be that hypocrite. Like what Shinichi said a long, long time ago, if he wanted the answers, he should wait when the time was right, or let the answer eventually come to him.

And if Shinichi didn’t want to talk, or do anything about it at the moment, there was no point for Kaito to force anything.

And maybe he didn’t have the rights to do it too.

Having nothing else to say, Kaito dusted his hands and returned to his own home.

“Wait.”

Kaito stopped.

“Uh.” Shinichi glanced at his mailbox.

“My doves didn’t shit on it this time,” Kaito said, which was true, yet deep down somewhere in his gut, he somehow wished they did.

“Yes, I can see that,” Shinichi answered back.

Kaito tilted his head. Shinichi sounded almost annoyed, but Kaito couldn’t pinpoint the main reason for it, just like the cause for the slump in his shoulder too. Kaito stayed silent and waited for Shinichi to continue.

“When are you planning to return my shirt?”

 _Huh. It’s for this?_ Kaito tugged onto the shirt, wondering. “Do you want me to take it off now?”

“Don’t.” Shinichi looked even more annoyed, but Kaito was much familiar and better with _this_ annoyance; the one that seemed only Kaito was capable of making Shinichi feel.

Kaito grinned.

“Just give it back to me next time,” Shinichi added.

“Ok.” That is, if Kaito remembered and not wear it every time after he finished washing it. “Is there anything else?”

“No. I guess not.” Shinichi was about to turn again. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

“...Wait.”

Oh God, even Hakuba wasn’t this fickle-minded with his words, and that was one hell of a comparison that Shinichi was forcing Kaito to make. “What now?” he said as he swung his arms up in the air.

“Do you... I mean, are you free?”

 _“Certainly not”,_ Kaito was about to say, but he held back his tongue and tried to ignore Jii’s reminder and chiding words echoing in his head. Rather than a yes or no, he said, “Why?”

“By any chance are you cooking later, like fried rice?” Shinichi looked awkward, and Kaito almost saw some resemblance of that awkwardness he saw in Mouri Ran that day. “Can I pay for you to cook an extra plate for me?”

 _Pay?_ Kaito wanted to shake his head, to mock, and maybe to laugh, but he considered himself reaping more benefits from the act of cooking that meal, more than what Shinichi could ever pay with him in money.

“I can do it for free,” Kaito said, and he found his cheeks aching from the smile that spread across his cheeks. “But in exchange, you have to answer my question: Is it safe to say that I’m your best—”

“Yes,” Shinichi interrupted with a sigh, but his gaze looked a little amused at the same time. “Yes you are.”


End file.
